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enFriday Philosophy – If I Was a Computer, I Might Be An IBM System 360http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-if-i-was-computer-i-might-be-ibm-system-360
<p>So today I turn 50. I spent a few minutes looking up what your typical computer looked like then and I decided the IBM System/360 was about right. It was a business machine. Personal computers did not exist then as, well, it was almost the dark ages…</p>
<p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-if-i-was-computer-i-might-be-ibm-system-360" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourFriday PhilosophyprivatePrivate LifeworkingFri, 20 Apr 2018 12:43:25 +0000mwidlake10274 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Not My Cup Of Teahttp://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-not-my-cup-tea
<p>A few days ago I tweeted a copy of a “motivational poster”. I don’t normally like motivational posters but this one struck a chord with me as it was a lesson I took a long time to learn. Not everyone will be your cup of tea. Which is a very British (I think) way of saying you don’t like something or someone. “Ohh, that Mavis, she’s just not my cup of tea!”.</p>
<p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-not-my-cup-tea" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourethicsFriday PhilosophyperceptionPerceptionsFri, 16 Mar 2018 11:02:35 +0000mwidlake10223 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Criticism is Critical for Believable Endorsementhttp://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-criticism-critical-believable-endorsement
<p>If you had a friend who always told you that your were the best, that you had no faults, and that everything you did was great – would you trust them? I know I would not. I am fully aware that I am not perfect(*). I used to see this sometimes in relationships too, especially when I was younger. One of them would be so desperate for their boyfriend/girlfriend to like them that they would never criticise the light of their life. The relationship never lasted as it was, well, creepy and false.</p>
<p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-criticism-critical-believable-endorsement" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourethicsFriday PhilosophyperceptionPerceptionsFri, 02 Mar 2018 15:53:25 +0000mwidlake10188 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Condoning Bad Behaviourhttp://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-condoning-bad-behaviour
<p>I used to work with a man called Nick(*). Nick was friendly enough, he was good at programming and he had very few annoying personal habits. Nick was easy to work with. </p>
<div data-shortcode="caption" id="attachment_3036" style="width: 310px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://mwidlake.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/temper-tantrum.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="3036" data-permalink="https://mwidlake.wordpress.com/2018/02/02/friday-philosophy-condoning-bad-behaviour/temper-tantrum/" data-orig-file="https://mwidlake.files.wordpress.com/2018/02/temper-tantrum.jpg?w=460" data-orig-size="300,132" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="temper-tantrum" data-image-description="
<p />I WON’T take my share of the Christmas Cover!
</a></div><p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-condoning-bad-behaviour" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourFriday PhilosophyManagementPerceptionsFri, 02 Feb 2018 12:22:26 +0000mwidlake10115 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – What Makes a Community?http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-what-makes-community
<p>Earlier this week <a href="https://danielwestermann.com/tag/oracle/">Daniel Westermann</a> asked a question on twitter: “What is community?” </p>
<div data-shortcode="caption" id="attachment_3008" style="width: 262px" class="wp-caption alignright"><a href="https://mwidlake.files.wordpress.com/2017/11/screenhunter_256-nov-10-13-34.jpg"><img data-attachment-id="3008" data-permalink="https://mwidlake.wordpress.com/2017/11/10/friday-philosophy-what-makes-a-community/screenhunter_256-nov-10-13-34/" data-orig-file="https://mwidlake.files.wordpress.com/2017/11/screenhunter_256-nov-10-13-34.jpg" data-orig-size="647,769" data-comments-opened="1" data-image-meta="{"aperture":"0","credit":"","camera":"","caption":"","created_timestamp":"0","copyright":"","focal_length":"0","iso":"0","shutter_speed":"0","title":"","orientation":"0"}" data-image-title="What_is_community" data-image-description="
<p />What is a community?
</a></div><p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-what-makes-community" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourConferenceFriday PhilosophyPerceptionsPresentingukouguser groupUser GroupsFri, 10 Nov 2017 14:48:32 +0000mwidlake9987 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Smart or Smart-Arse?http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-smart-or-smart-arse
<p>Many of you know what a “Smart-Arse” is. For those who do not…</p>
<blockquote><p>A “Smart-arse” a person who is irritating because they behave as if they know everything or try to catch you out by misleading you. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>A smart person will look at your problem and say something like “have you tried checking the array size?” and, 8 times out of 10, their input will help you solve your problem. It may not be THE answer but it makes you think about root causes.</p>
<p>A Smart-arse will say something more like “well, I would never have your problem as I would not have joined a company full of Java Nerds!!!”. Yeah, maybe that would have avoided my specific problem <a href="http://search.twitter.com/search?q=%231">#1</a>, but it is of <em>no practical worth right now. </em>.</p>
<p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-smart-or-smart-arse" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourFriday PhilosophyhumourperceptionPerceptionsrantFri, 20 Oct 2017 10:26:43 +0000mwidlake9950 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Are Leaving Presentations A Quaint British Tradition?http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-are-leaving-presentations-quaint-british-tradition
<p>A few days ago a friend, <a href="http://oraclewizard.com/Oraclewizard/author/rlockard/">Robert Lockard</a>, started a discussion on Facebook about bad bosses and the strange things they did. I mentioned how one of my first bosses had refused to do my leaving presentation, arguing with <em>his</em> boss (very loudly so all could hear, despite it being in “an office” – a plastic box in the corner) that he did not want to be nice to me and do the presentation. Neither did his boss!</p>
<p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-are-leaving-presentations-quaint-british-tradition" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourFriday Philosophyoff-topicperceptionworkingFri, 11 Aug 2017 10:09:46 +0000mwidlake9832 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Sometime The Solution Has To Not Only Match The Problem But Also…http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-sometime-solution-has-not-only-match-problem-also%E2%80%A6
<p>…The People!</p>
<p>When you design a system for end users, a good designer/developer considers the “UX” – User eXperience. The system has to be acceptable to the end user. This is often expressed as “easy to use” or “fun” or “Quick”. But in reality, the system can fail in all sort of ways but still be a success <strong>if the end user gets something out of using it</strong>. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again and again until I give up on this career. In my opinion:</p>
<blockquote><p>User Acceptance is the number one aim of any I.T. system.</p>
</blockquote><p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-sometime-solution-has-not-only-match-problem-also%E2%80%A6" target="_blank">read more</a></p>ArchitecturebehaviourdevelopmentFriday PhilosophyperceptionPerceptionsperformanceProgrammingsystem developmentFri, 04 Aug 2017 12:59:41 +0000mwidlake9819 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Improving Your Working Lifehttp://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-improving-your-working-life
<p>If I got you all to write down the top 5 things that make working bearable, and then got you to make a list of the top 5 things that make working enjoyable, I have a suspicion there will be one thing high on the “Enjoyable” list that may not even be on the “Bearable” list:</p>
<blockquote><p>Being in a good team.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>This one thing can make a real difference to your working life. I know this is true for me and it’s something I’ve heard other people say a lot. The team you are in can make up for a lot of negative things about any given job. I’ve found myself in roles where I am unsuitable for the task, or under a ridiculously high workload, even being paid much less than I know I am worth. But if I have been in a good team, working with people I like (well, at least some of them!) it makes it all a lot better. A lot, lot better. Think about the jobs or roles you have most enjoyed in your life. In any of them did you <em>not</em> like the team you were in?</p>
<p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-improving-your-working-life" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourFriday PhilosophyhumourManagementperceptionPerceptionsFri, 14 Jul 2017 12:40:35 +0000mwidlake9771 at http://mobile.oaktable.netFriday Philosophy – Robots Rising & Tech Taking Over?http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-robots-rising-tech-taking-over
<p>Today I saw some cracking photographs of a lighthouse. How many of us have at some point wondered if it might be nice to be a lighthouse keeper? The solitude, the scenery, the stoic fortitude in the face of the storm – quite literally. (Thank you Brendan Tierney for the photo I’ve stolen from him).</p>
<p><a href="http://mobile.oaktable.net/content/friday-philosophy-%E2%80%93-robots-rising-tech-taking-over" target="_blank">read more</a></p>behaviourethicsFriday PhilosophyfutureperceptionPerceptionsrantFri, 07 Jul 2017 11:56:41 +0000mwidlake9756 at http://mobile.oaktable.net